Adjustable body support



Jan. 12, 1932. I w Zl 1,840,675

ADJUSTABLE BODY SUPPORT Filed March 31, 1930 r 5 l A? f Z7 v 6 o a. w m 7 8 l/ [n1 -25 8 Lu Li T25 tained therein.

With'the device of the invention may ae' om inexpensive construction pf. the c Patented Jan. 12, 1932 ERNEST W LET ZIG, or" KAn'sAs crrY, vrrssoum AnJUsTA LE QBonY SUPPORT Application filed March '31, 1930. Serial No. 440,452.

This invention relates to adjustable body supports for use in caskets whereby the undertaker may elevate the body as close to the top of the casket as desired for exposure during funeralceremonies and thelike, all of the operating parts being readily accessible without disturbingtheposition of the body, its supporting mattress, or the casket lining.

Although a number of dilferent devicesof 1 this general character have been produced, no one, as far as I am aware, has produced a construction providing for all possible ad justments which may be needed in use, as due to physical characteristics of cadavers,'dif:'er-

V ence in girth, etc, it is frequently necessary to provide means whereby one shoulder or one leg may be elevated 'higherthan the other shoulder or leg, or it maybe desired to place i the torso or the pedal extremities in'a plane above or below the other parts of the body, or even to lower the hips and elevat'e boththe shoulders and feet, these adjustmentsbeing necessary as caskets are urchased without relation to the girth of the'body to be con- The undertaker, th r fore;

modate anycasket to the size of the b o dy for its best exposure. 1 i p The prime ob ect of the present invention,

" therefore, is to provide a body support ha-v-f ing such a degreeof fl'exibility that, if-the support extends for the full length ofthe casket, any quarter of thebo'dymay be adjusted independently of the other body sec tions, so that the undertaker may-position the body to the greatest advantage in .the casket, it being of course understood that after the ceremony the body and itssupport are lowered, if desired,- into the casket-for burial. 1- Another object of'the invention is to'provide mechanism which will not decrease the capacity of the casket and whichis of such construct-ion that for'exhibition purposes to a prospective customer, itjis possibleto fold back the foot end upon the head end'so that the shell may be-exhibitedentirely free'of operatingmecha-nisln. V 1

' A still further object'of theinventionis to produce astrong, durable, efficien't simpleand haracter set shell.

spacing blocks 4:, each of said blocks carryforth; and in order that it may be fully in;

derstood, reference is to be had to the accompanyingdrawings, in which; r V Figure 1 is a top plan view of a casket shell with the-body support of the invention-in operative' relation thereto. Figure '2Tis a side elevation with onecside of the casketIshell removed from position. Figurefi is [a view similar to Figure l, but illillstrates anadjustable support for the torso ony. Figure 4 is a. detail view of the preferred type of support for the head end of the cats ketshell. i r- ,1 Figure 5is a detail view of the preferred type of support for the foot end of theeasket Figure 6 is a detail of the endsof a cross piece forming apart of the invention. v i I In the. said drawings,where like "reference characters identify corresponding parts in all-of the figures, 1 indicates a casket; shell of generally rectangular shape as common, 1

and 'secured to the interiorside walls OfSEtlCl' shellsome distance abovethe bottom thereof and being arranged in pairs at the mid center ofthe casket and on the head and foot wa1ls2 and 3 respectively, are a series of ing] a spaced guide strap 5'by .rneans of screwsv 6., The guides 5provide slots for the reception of vertically adjustable supporting straps 7." Each of the'straps 7 is-provided at its upper end with an operating handle 8 out-turned toward the shell of the casket and therefore overlying the blocks 4 so that the available width and length of the casket shell shallnot bematerially decreased,-a-nd;each

- of saidf strap's is also provided with a series of adjusting notches 9 in one of its side edges, whereby it is possible to vertically adjust the straps by engaging thenot'ches with one of the supporting screws or pins 6. j

. Resting: on the bottom of thecasket shell and having its ends, when in normal position, terminating substantially flush with thefa-ces of the mid-center straps/7, is a cross piece 10, each end thereof having a double-bevel 11 and 12, the former extending downwardly and outwardly from the top of thecross piece 9 and the latter upwardly and inwardly from the bottom of the cross-piece. Inserted in the ends of the cross-piece 10 and projecting through the bevel 11 are pins 13 reinforced with L-shaped stirrups let secured to the under side of the cross piece, said pins passing through a large opening 15 in the lower ends of their respective straps 7. With this construction it will be evident that either end of the cross piece 10 may be raised, the straps 7 remaining substantially vertical, as the bevel l1 and enlarged openings 15 will accommodate the arcuate movement of the cross-piece, so that the ends will not engage and j amb against the side walls of the casket shell.

Extending from head. end 2 of the casket shell and having their extremities terminating substantially flush with the inside faces of the head supporting straps '7 are a pair of supporting head-bars 16 having their opposite ends hingedly connected as at 17 to the cross-piece 10. The free ends of the supporting head-straps are provided with enlarged openings 18 engaging pins 19, reinforced by stirrups 20, projecting from the ends of the head-bars 16 substantially as described in connection with the straps 7 at the ends of the cross-piece 10. With this con struction it will be evident that the barsl16 may be adjusted to the desired angular relation and that their supporting straps will re-. main substantially vertical.

Arranged in alinement with each of the bars 16 are a pair of foot-bars 21, said head and foot alined bars being hingedly connected together as at 22. The free ends of the foot bars 21 terminate, when in normal position, substantially flush with the inside faces of the adjustable foot-supporting straps 7, but, as under certain conditions it is desir-' able to remove all operating mechanism on the foot end of the casket for exhibition to a prospective purchaser, the foot-straps 7 are provided at their lower ends with keyhole openings 23 for detachable engagement with headed pins 24 projecting from the ends of the foot-bars 21. The adjustment of said bars is otherwise similar in all respects to the adjustment of the other partsof the mechanism.

The spaced alined bars are connected together by flexible cross webs 25 to provide a support for a mattress 26, making it possible to independently adjust any quarter of a body through the independent adjustment of any or all of the points of support, so that the undertaker may conveniently and easily adjust a body for exhibition purposes without the necessity of disturbing the body, its mattress or the lining of the casket (not shown).

I11 order to overcome any possible tendency of the entire body support moving toward the foot end of the casket due to the fact that the preponderating load is at the head end thereof, the inner faces of the casket shell, at substantially their mid line, are provided with vertically-extending stops 27 in position for abutment with the crosspiece 10, whereby any possible movement toward the footv is entirely prevented.

In Figure 3 a half length or torso body support is indicated, such construction corresponding in all details with that above described, except that the foot-bars are entirely omitted. This construction is used in the type'of casket in which the head end only ,is open for exhibition at the burial services.

From the above description, it will be apparent-that while I have produced a construction embodying all the features of advantage set forth as desirable, it is to be understood that I reserve the right to make all changes properly falling within the spirit and scope of the appended claims and the condition of the prior art,

I Iclaim:

' 1. The combination with a casket shell, of a body support comprising a pair of bars, each pair being arranged in two hingedly connected sections, extending lengthwise of the casket shell and within the same, flexible connections extending crosswise of said casketshell and secured at their opposite ends tosaid bars to permit the bars on opposite sides of-the shell to move independently of each other, and means interconnecting the opposite ends of said bars and casket shell foreffecting independent vertical adjustment of the ends of said bars.

2. The combination with a casket shell, of a, body supportcomprising a pair of bars extending lengthwise of the casket shell and withinthe same, each of said bars being divided into two sections hingedly connected together, and means interconnecting the hinged ends of said bars, said means being independently vertically adjustable at its opposite ends.

3. 'The combination with a casket shell, of abody support comprising a pair of bars extending lengthwise'of the casket shell and within the same, flexible connections extending crosswise of said casket shell and secured at their opposite ends to said bars, rigid straps loosely connected to the ends of said bars and having a series of locking notches, and pins carried by said casket shell for cooperating engagement with the locking notches of said straps for effecting independent'adjustment of the ends of said bars.

4. The combination with a casket shell, of a body support comprising a pair of bars extending lengthwise of the casket shell and within the same, each of said bars being divided into two sections hingedly connected together, means interconnecting the hinged ends of said bars, said means being independently vertically adjustable at its opposite ends, and means for effecting independent adjustment of the free ends of said bar sections.

5. The combination with a casket shell, of a body support comprising a pair of similar bars adjacent opposite sides of the casket and having their ends adapted for independent vertical adjustments along the ad: jacent ends of the casket shell, a cross member underlying the other ends of said bars to which the bars are hingedly connected, a second pair ofbars arranged in alinement with the hinged bars and hingedly secured thereto, and means for independently vertically adjusting the free endsfof said sec-' ond pair of bars with respect to the end of the casket wall adjacent thereto.

6. The combination with a casket shell, of; v a body support comprising a pair of bars extending longitudinally of the. casket shell and within the same, each of said bars being divided into two hingedly connected sections, a cross member interconnecting the hinged 1 ends of said bars and extending transversely of the casket shell, and means at the opposite ends of said cross member for eifecting vertical adjustment of either end thereof with respect to the side Walls of the casket adjacent thereto. I In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

' ERNEST W. LETZIG. 

